The Gemshorn is an early form of recorder, made of a cow horn with a cedar
fipple inserted at the wide end. It has an incredibly sweet sound due to the
conical shape of the horn. They have 7 finger holes and 1 thumbhole, and play
similar to a recorder (the sopranino has 5 finger holes plus 1 thumbhole and
fingers like an ocarina). I normally order instruments with gemshorn
fingerings (see chart below), as they are better in tune and easier to play than
recorder fingerings. They have a range of one octave and one note. During
the 15th c. it must have been a fairly common instrument, as there existed an
organ stop of that name. They can be ordered with gemshorn
fingerings (highly recommended--see fingering chart; similar to Renaissance
fingerings), or with recorder fingerings (much larger finger holes and hard to
play). These gemshorns are made by Pavel
Číp to exacting standards. Fingering can vary from that
given in the fingering chart. Soundclip (soon--well, maybe later).

I got in my first sets in mid-March and sent off most of them
to waiting customers. I had 5 instruments left and our Sunday morning
recorder consort tried them for about 30 minutes. The unanimous opinion
was that they were beautifully made and sounded wonderfully sweet. I even
played the bass at our recorder society meeting on some Josquin pieces.
The sound is just different enough from a recorder to stand out and adds a sweet
tone color to the group.

Gemshorn care is similar to that
required for recorders. Because they have a cedar block, they
should be broken in slowly over a period of weeks using the schedule
supplied for recorders. The instruments should be allowed to dry
out between uses. They should not be played for more than approximately
one hour at a time. Gemshorns should not be oiled. The
exterior can be cleaned by wiping with a soft damp cloth.

Email,
call or write me to order or discuss your needs. You can't order
from my web site--I like to discuss your order with you first.

Many people have
told me how much they enjoy my bringing my ‘store’ of instruments to
workshops so that they can try many different ones over the course of a
few days.This makes their
decision-making process much easier.

Obviously, when
ordering by mail, I can’t send you my whole ‘store’ of instruments
to try, but I do try to come as close as is reasonably possible.All instruments can be ordered on approval.I am happy to send out two or more instruments for you to
compare.For instance, I
could send out two or three rosewood altos, or rosewood, pearwood,
grenadilla andboxwood
altos for you to sample.Then
you can play them (please, no more than 15 minutes per day, just as
if you were starting the breaking-in process), let your friends try or
listen to them, and let a teacher try them.This

gives you some feedback on your choice, and gives you more
confidence in your decision.

I want you to be
satisfied with your instrument, and feel under no obligation to buy it
if you don’t like it.A
normal time for deciding is approximately one week.I, of course, expect any returned instruments to be in like-new condition
(see below). Whether you decide
to buy an instrument or not, all I ask is that you pay for shipping costs
both ways.

Once you have
decided on a purchase, I will bill you.

Email, call or write me to order or discuss your needs. You can't order
from my web site--I like to discuss your order with you first.

I
had an instrument returned that smelled of cigarette smoke. The customer
did not smoke, but a visitor did. I haven't yet succeeded in removing the
smell. I can't sell a smoky instrument, so I do not want to send instruments
on approval to households where people are allowed to smoke. If a
smoky-smelling (or mildew-smelling) instrument is returned to me, I will not accept it, and you will
have bought it, since it is no longer in like-new condition. In my experience, hardly any recorder players
smoke, so this should be a rare occurrence. So please, no smoke, mildew or
lipstick, and brush your teeth before playing--all things you should do if the
instrument were yours. I hope you
understand this policy.